💎 PREMIUM: Id/calloona - Uncensored 2025

A unique blend of retro-futuristic cyberpunk and magical-fantasy genres, this richly atmospheric and beautiful adventure game is a relaxing treat for the senses and spirit, led by a chatty but charming main protagonist April Ryan. Many supporting characters have memorable voice acting and reveal their motivations and fears in comprehensive dialogue options that drive the story. Even though said dialogue can sometimes be a little too self-aware and campy for its good. Graphics and music are dated but I find them charming and nostalgic. Bugs and dated graphics are easily fixed by the ResidualVM community patch. In any case, this game will always live in a special place in my heart.

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Some bugs exist:
- The dialog box is blank (though typing Y or N will still work)
- ClearType text will be disabled in your OS if you had to force shut down the game app.
- Missing fonts

Fortunately, all of this can be additionally patched via the ResidualVM unofficial patch (search for it in the Steam community) before starting your game. Both the graphics and FMVs will become better as a result. Fonts rendered become anti-aliased as well, which makes the reading experience a lot better.

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The good (mild spoilers):

- The world-building for this game is good. Rich ambient sounds, visuals, character designs for settings for two different genres in a single game!

- All of the voice actors were stellar. Side characters were either written well and had nuanced acting like Father Raul, Warren Hughes, Captain Nebevay, or slightly outlandish but memorable likeDetective Minnelli, Brian Westhouse, or Burns Flipper. Minor characters are usually slightly campy but still memorable and entertaining. For example, even though the cops we meet in Newport were not visually striking and seems to look the same, we meet an aspiring actor in the police station playing as a cop for an upcoming film, and the cop who shoots down April's cringe-worthy attempts at seduction by declaring his sexual orientation. Other characters that are still memorable are the cups seller, the map seller the old man, Roper Klacks, the Stick Men, the soulless offworld sales rep and the elitist bellboy at the MTI headquarters.

- April's commentary on the world is fully voice acted with conviction every time. Her diary is useful to keep up with the state of affairs and is also a joy to read, especially when writing about being seasick while onboard the White Dragon

- Bird / Crow brings some seemingly improvisational levity with their interactions to tense or lonely moments in the game

- Talking to Fiona, Charlie, and Emma at the start of the game

- Getting the Alatien denizens to tell you their stories

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The meh (spoilers):

- Lengthy conversation sessions that can only be skipped with the "Time Skip" ability but at a risk of losing precious voice acting from new dialogue options

- Dilemmas in the game that are presented do not present any consequences in the end

- April's commentary on objects around her don't usually change, which means in some places during different scenes where the mood is different, the sudden mood change from the narrative to the fixed commentary on her objects can get quite jarring, e.g. cheerfully commenting on things in her bedroom in the start and while having the door knocked down by a Voltec goon

- Puzzles can be a pain. I was only able to solve some of the more obtuse puzzles with the help of guides or YouTube videos. I can't imagine how other people manage to solve them back when the game came out. Such as getting the marquee fuse box key, getting into the police station for the first time, or solving the ancient Maerum Temple stones and the damned island statues.

- I think that would have been more emotionally impactful to have Charlie, Emma, and Fiona play a bigger role in April's story in Stark. Charlie and Emma are her best friends, but they never play a supporting role in her story in Newport.

- The story starts to go downhill after April returns to Newport from Marcuria the second time, and the build-up didn't pay off at the ending. The twist at the ending that she was never supposed to be the Guardian was good in theory but could have been executed better. After all this set up in the first and second acts, April hasn't grown as a character (such as forgiving her father at the second trial), and her victory at the end seems a little underwhelming.

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Looking forward to playing the Dreamfall Chapters after this!

After playing both Dreamfall: The Longest Journey (DTLJ) and Dreamfall Chapters (DC) after this game, if you have to play Dreamfall, I recommend keeping your expectations very low for DTLJ, and your expectations even lower for DC. I found the best way to live with myself is to accept the ending in this game alone, and move on with my life.

They did it. A solid and fun RPG today, but I think as time progresses, I think it will be eventually remembered as a beautiful and poignant story and piece of art, like how we view a classic work of literature today, like a Joseph Conrad novel or For Whom The Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway (both authors works are referenced which the writers make clear nods to). I'm so happy I played it and avoided all spoilers. Absorb the story and world as you would a good book or TV series.